This ad from the NRCC marks the official taking off of the gloves. This signals that they’re bringing the heavy artillery out. Check this out:
It isn’t easy to hold people’s attention for 90 seconds. This video does. Bravo.
Technorati Tags: NRCC, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, Barney Frank, Maxine Waters, Credit Crisis, Franklin Raines, Scandal, Election 2008
Cross-posted at LetFreedomRingBlog
I predicted this last night that Sen. McCain would clobber Sen. Biden for his whoppers. My prediction was just vindicated. Check this video out:
Alot of the Obama Media Corp. is saying that Joe Biden did what he needed to do last night. They’re probably right. He didn’t dare speak the truth about Sen. Obama’s agenda.
Ace of Spades has the rundown of Biden’s whoppers:
JOE BIDEN’S 14 LIES TONIGHT
1. TAX VOTE: Biden said McCain voted “the exact same way” as Obama to increase taxes on Americans earning just $42,000, but McCain DID NOT VOTE THAT WAY.
2. AHMEDINIJAD MEETING: Joe Biden lied when he said that Barack Obama never said that he would sit down unconditionally with Mahmoud Ahmedinijad of Iran. Barack Obama did say specifically, and Joe Biden attacked him for it.
3. OFFSHORE OIL DRILLING: Biden said, “Drill we must.” But Biden has opposed offshore drilling and even compared offshore drilling to “raping” the Outer Continental Shelf.” (more…)
The first thing that struck me was Sen. Biden’s opening answer. Here’s Gwen Ifill’s question and Sen. Biden’s answer:
IFILL: The House of Representatives this week passed a bill, a big bailout bill, or didn’t pass it, I should say. The Senate decided to pass it, and the House is wrestling with it still tonight.
As America watches these things happen on Capitol Hill, Senator Biden, was this the worst of Washington or the best of Washington that we saw play out?
BIDEN: Let me begin by thanking you, Gwen, for hosting this.
And, Governor, it’s a pleasure to meet you, and it’s a pleasure to be with you.
I think it’s neither the best or worst of Washington, but it’s evidence of the fact that the economic policies of the last eight years have been the worst economic policies we’ve ever had. As a consequence, you’ve seen what’s happened on Wall Street.
If you need any more proof positive of how bad the economic theories have been, this excessive deregulation, the failure to oversee what was going on, letting Wall Street run wild, I don’t think you needed any more evidence than what you see now.
Sen. Biden’s talking points failed him badly. In fact, staying ‘on message’ caused him to open with a whopper. “Excessive deregulation” didn’t have a thing to do with the Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac crisis. Nothing whatsoever. Saying that it was caused by Bush administration policies is another whopper.
I’m not saying that I agree with all of President Bush’s economic policies but the crisis was set in motion when Bill Clinton signed into law a bill that penalized banks that didn’t grant enough mortgages to people who were bad credit risks. That had nothing to do with President Bush. In fact, it had to do with a bill that Sen. Biden likely voted on.
Reading through the transcript, something else jumped out at me. Here’s Gov. Palin’s answer to the same Ifill question:
You know, I think a good barometer here, as we try to figure out has this been a good time or a bad time in America’s economy, is go to a kid’s soccer game on Saturday, and turn to any parent there on the sideline and ask them, “How are you feeling about the economy?”
And I’ll bet you, you’re going to hear some fear in that parent’s voice, fear regarding the few investments that some of us have in the stock market. Did we just take a major hit with those investments?
Fear about, how are we going to afford to send our kids to college? A fear, as small-business owners, perhaps, how we’re going to borrow any money to increase inventory or hire more people.
The barometer there, I think, is going to be resounding that our economy is hurting and the federal government has not provided the sound oversight that we need and that we deserve, and we need reform to that end.
Now, John McCain thankfully has been the one representing reform. Two years ago, remember, it was John McCain who pushed so hard with the Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac reform measures. He sounded that warning bell. (more…)
I took a spin around the internet tonight to see what people thought. First, here’s what the McCain camp said:
“Tonight, Governor Palin proved beyond any doubt that she is ready to lead as Vice President of the United States. She won this debate, putting Joe Biden on defense on energy, foreign policy, taxes and the definition of change. Governor Palin laid bare Barack Obama’s record of voting to raise taxes, opposing the surge in Iraq, and proposing to meet unconditionally with the leaders of state sponsors of terror. The differences between the Obama-Biden ticket and the McCain-Palin ticket could not have been clearer. The American people saw stark contrasts in style and worldview. They saw Joe Biden, a Washington insider and a 36-year Senator, and Governor Palin, a Washington outsider and a maverick reformer. Governor Palin was direct, forceful and a breath of fresh air.” –Jill Hazelbaker, McCain-Palin 2008 Communications Director
You wouldn’t expect Team McCain to say anything but blowing things about Gov. Palin’s performance so this isn’t a surprising response. Nonetheless, I think it’s a pretty accurate summation. Her reply that you have to walk the walk, not just talk the talk was a great one-liner. Her rebuke on what Gen. McClellan said was a sharp response, too. She proved that she’s absolutely competent.
Here’s what Roger L. Simon of Pajamas Media said:
I actually had some sympathy for Joe Biden tonight (who we all know thinks John McCain is better than Obama anyway – he’s said so, as Palin was correct to point out). He was an aging fellow (like me) forced to debate a young and much more charismatic woman who was easily his equal. You could see in his body language that he knew it.
I didn’t watch the debate so I’ll take Roger’s word that Biden’s body language said that he knew she was doing well.
Earlier tonight, I called Hugh’s ‘postgame wrap’ and said that people wouldn’t buy that John McCain doesn’t support the troops like Biden tried convincing people of. Here’s what Hugh wrote about tonight’s debate: (more…)
Robert Novak has posted something at Townhall.com about Sen. Obama mocking Sen. Obama’s definition of a tax loophole. Here’s what Mr. Novak posted:
How would Barack Obama pay for the $800 billion that John McCain claimed in the first presidential debate Sept. 26 in Oxford, Miss., that his Democratic opponent would spend if he were elected president? Obama replied, by “closing tax loopholes.”
Obama was no more specific in the debate, and tax experts doubt that structural changes without increasing taxes can raise anything close to that amount of money.
My office asked the Obama campaign for the details, and it responded with a 19-page single-spaced paper on the candidate’s “tax plans.”
In fact, there was precious little about tax policy in the paper, which amounted to a repeat of Democratic campaign oratory that can be heard in 30-second speeches before both houses of Congress daily on C-SPAN. (more…)
Soren Dayton has posted a video of the voter fraud scheme that Ohio’s Democratic Secretary of State and the Ohio legislature have put together. Here’s that video:
Here’s what The NextRight is reporting:
Early voting is taking place in Ohio. Through the end of the week, people can register and vote on the same day. The Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner argues that they are merely “casting their ballot” rather than “voting” so the fact that Ohio statute requires 30 days between registering and voting would not interfere. (more…)
This Hill Magazine article shows that it’s never too early for Democrats to play the Social Security scare card. Here’s what the Hill is reporting:
National Democrats continue to bet heavily on Social Security privatization as a trump card in the 2008 elections, launching attack ads in three more districts Tuesday that accuse GOP candidates of supporting risky private accounts.
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) is now up with at least eight ads on the topic, while Senate Democrats are using the issue in ads in Louisiana and Oregon.
Tuesday’s additions go after a pair of Pennsylvania candidates, Rep. Phil English and top challenger Lou Barletta, as well as former Rep. Mike Sodrel (R-IN). And in another Pennsylvania race, Rep. Jason Altmire (D) is also up with a new ad linking former Rep. Melissa Hart (R) to President Bush’s privatization plan.
Alicia Collins, the campaign manager for Melissa Hart, took issue with the Altmire campaign for running ads that were intended to scare people. Here’s what Ms. Collins said in response to the DCCC’s ads:
“It seems that Jason Altmire is once again getting his direction from the Obama/Pelosi playbook, scare the public about any idea put forward, but offer no ideas of your own,” said Campaign Manger, Alicia Collins.
Collins added, “Instead of airing untrue and extremely misleading advertisements to scare people about their financial future, Congressman Altmire should get back to work in Washington and address the current financial crisis.”
I’m personally calling Jason Altmire out on this. It’s a gutless thing to let an ad like that run. It’s intellectually bankrupt. It’s indefensible. Most importantly, it tells me that he doesn’t have a positive agenda to run on. (more…)
Following Monday’s vote on the Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac bailout, two things should be clear to the American people: Barack Obama is a sideline watcher and Nancy Pelosi cares more about playing hyperpartisan politics than she cares about doing what’s right for the American people.
When John McCain jumped into the mess last week, 4 House Republican were on board with the bailout. When the final tally was counted yesterday, 65 Republicans voted for the bill. John McCain’s jumping into the fray meant another thing: House Republicans got a seat at the table, allowing them to negotiate into the bill some meaningful provisions that would’ve protected taxpayers to a certain extent. John Boehner worked hard to get Republicans on board. That’s the picture of leadership.
By comparison, Barack Obama wanted to stay away in the worst way. He only returned to Washington because President Bush invited him. That isn’t the picture of leadership. The minute the meeting ended, his jet was winging him away from Washington. He didn’t lift a finger over the weekend. Yes, he stayed in touch with Secretary Paulson but he didn’t call House Democrats urging them to vote for this bill.
He essentially voted present again. That’s unacceptable, especially considering the fact that this was supposedly the biggest financial crisis since the Great Depression. In my opinion, there’s two reasons why he isn’t interjecting himself into this crisis. (more…)
Last Thursday, Jim Hoft at Gateway Pundit reported that St. Louis City Circuit Attorney Jennifer Joyce and St. Louis County Circuit Attorney Bob McCulloch were forming an Obama truth squad:
St. Louis City Circuit Attorney Jennifer Joyce and St. Louis County Circuit Attorney Bob McCulloch are threatening to bring libel charges against those who speak out falsely against Barack Obama.
KMOV aired a story last night, that stated that St. Louis County Circuit Attorney Bob McCulloch and St. Louis City Circuit Attorney Jennifer Joyce, both Obama supporters, are threatening to bring criminal libel charges against anyone who levels what turns out to be false criticisms of their chosen candidate for President.
Now, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch is running this quote from Jennifer Joyce about the OTS:
As a citizen, I believe that elections should be about issues. I also have enormous respect for our First Amendment and freedom of speech. My sole purpose in participating in this initiative is about getting truthful information to the voters. This has never been or never will be about prosecuting people.
Clearly there are those who are attempting to twist the purpose of this initiative for their own benefit. This attack is a great example of how the truth is distorted in campaigns and what we’re trying to stand up against.
Ms. Joyce’s line that she has “enormous respect for our First Amendment” is downright laughable. (more…)
This afternoon, John McCain said that he’s suspending his campaign until the financial crisis is solved:
Tomorrow morning, I will suspend my campaign and return to Washington after speaking at the Clinton Global Initiative. I have spoken to Senator Obama and informed him of my decision and have asked him to join me.
I am calling on the President to convene a meeting with the leadership from both houses of Congress, including Senator Obama and myself. It is time for both parties to come together to solve this problem.
We must meet as Americans, not as Democrats or Republicans, and we must meet until this crisis is resolved.I am directing my campaign to work with the Obama campaign and the commission on presidential debates to delay Friday night’s debate until we have taken action to address this crisis.
I am confident that before the markets open on Monday we can achieve consensus on legislation that will stabilize our financial markets, protect taxpayers and homeowners, and earn the confidence of the American people. All we must do to achieve this is temporarily set politics aside, and I am committed to doing so.
In response, the Obama campaign said that Friday’s debate is still on:
However a senior Obama campaign official said Obama “intends to debate.” “The debate is on,” a senior Obama campaign official told ABC News.
This is a PR blunder of disastrous proportions on the Obama campaign’s behalf. If he’s the only one on stage Friday night, people will know that he chose politics over solving a crisis. Postponing this debate isn’t a big deal. Solving this crisis is important.
Rest assured that Sen. Obama will look petty if he’s the only one on stage Friday night. This plays into Sen. McCain’s Country First theme. It will create a Me First theme for Sen. Obama.
Technorati Tags: Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, Banking, Crisis, John McCain, Country First, Barack Obama, Election 2008
Cross-posted at LetFreedomRingBlog